Billie Jean King Cup: Great Britain lose opening group tie to Kazakhstan with Elena Rybakina beating Harriet Dart
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Updated 08/11/2022 at 23:01 GMT
Hosts Great Britain lost their opening Group C match in Glasgow, with Harriet Dart falling in straight sets to Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina after Yulia Putintseva battled past British No. 3 Katie Boulter. Olivia Nicholls and Alicia Barnett did win their doubles rubber, but with the tie already over, GB may be unable to qualify for the semis come Thursday’s meeting with Spain.
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Great Britain slipped to a 2-1 defeat in their opening group tie against Kazakhstan at the Billie Jean King Cup in Glasgow.
Having only qualified for the Finals as hosts, the British team knew they would be up against it with Kazakhstan and Spain for company in Group C.
In the absence of Emma Raducanu, Harriet Dart is the highest-ranked British player, but on Tuesday the world No. 98 was no match for Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina, who won in straight sets.
Katie Boulter had opened proceedings for Britain earlier in the day, but despite a valiant effort the British No. 3 lost in three sets to Yulia Putintseva.
Those results handed Kazakhstan an unassailable 2-0 lead, although Olivia Nicholls and Alicia Barnett went on to win their doubles rubber in straight sets against Rybakina and Anna Danilina, a result which could have a bearing on the final standings.
With four groups of three nations, only one team qualifies from the round-robin stage to make the semi-finals. GB face Spain next on Thursday, by which point they could already be eliminated if Kazakhstan go on to beat Spain on Wednesday.
"We've still got a match to play for and, how I see it [right now], it's very much still alive," Dart said.
"We've just got to keep being positive, putting in some good performances out there. All we can do is give our very best and whatever happens happens."
The day started with promise for the British team, captained by Anne Keothavong, as Boulter took the opening set 6-4 against world No. 51 Putintseva.
The first set was littered with both breaks and further opportunities, but come the second set Putintseva converted the one and only chance for either player before levelling the match.
A three-time Grand Slam quarter-finalist, Putintseva then raced to a 4-0 lead in the decider, and after missing four chances to make it 5-0 she soon wrapped up the match for a 4-6 6-3 6-2 win.
“I love the atmosphere, I really enjoyed playing here and I was trying to adapt for any situation,” Putintseva said afterwards.
“I'm just trying to bring my fighting spirit for my country and do my best.”
After Boulter’s defeat, Dart then had the daunting task of facing world No. 22 Rybakina, who won a shock Wimbledon title four months ago.
Dart broke into the top 100 this year, reaching the second round at both Wimbledon and the US Open, but the 26-year-old was ultimately outclassed 6-1 6-4 on Tuesday evening.
Two breaks helped Rybakina win five games in a row in the opening set, and she made it seven games on the spin when breaking straight away in the second set.
Dart did give herself some hope when levelling at 2-2, but Rybakina upped her game and enjoyed one more break to seal the match.
"It wasn't an easy match, it was tough but I'm happy that I won it in two sets," Rybakina said.
"[In the second set] my focus was a bit up and down, I didn't play well for two games on my serve but in the end I managed to win.
"My serve is helping me a lot, and in the tight moments I played well."
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